Ocado looks set to close Southampton site ahead of Andover opening


Ocado is considering plans to close its online supermarket facility at Marchwood in Southampton, casting doubt on the future of 150 jobs.

The company is opening a new distribution depot in Andover next year as online grocery sales boom, and is proposing to close the smaller facility on the Marchwood Industrial Estate.

Ocado says everyone working at the Marchwood site will be offered a suitable alternative role in Andover.

The new facility being built in Andover is due to create 700 jobs. The five-floor, 240,000 square foot building will be home to 95 vans and will process 70,000 orders a week.

Ocado has seen sales soar by more than 17% this year and now serves more than 471,000 customers across the UK.

Unlike its main rivals Ocado does all its home deliveries from two main warehouses and 15 regional sites, including Marchwood.